Developing brains are highly vulnerable to gene mutations and harmful environment. In the Wang lab, we aim to determine how neural circuits (brain functional units) assemble for optimized functions and we seek to identify which steps along this process, when disrupted, lead to severe mental problems. We develop rodent models to test hypotheses about brain structure-function relationship in sensory systems. Parallel studies of three disease conditions are ongoing, including fragile X syndrome (FXS; a leading single gene cause of autism and intellectual disability), fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD; an environmental-induced server brain disorder), and hearing loss (the most common birth defect among newborns and a common problem for older adults). This approach allows identification of molecular signatures, cellular phenotypes, and functional deficits that are common across distinct etiology. Genetic, surgical, and experience-based manipulations of sensory organ (inner ear) are used to examine periphery-brain interactions during the progress of developmental deficits. Additionally, we adopt unique approaches of targeted gene manipulation (in ovo electroporation) with individual terminal analyses for in-depth analyses of gene-protein function in circuit assembly and synaptogenesis. Currently funded projects focus on roles of FMRP in presynaptic axons and its transsynaptic influence on dendritic development and synaptic maturation. Sophisticated microscopic approaches (including multi-channel confocal and multi-photon deep brain imaging) enable temporospatial mapping of anatomical circuit formation and protein/RNA complex mobility. Finally, human tissue samples are used to provide direct links between animal studies to clinical representations.